Philophobia
by nemui-usagi
Summary: He could have been Naruto's last chance of redemption in this bleak world if he would just open up his heart and let him in. Sasunarusasu AU


**Parings:** Sasunaru (Although it is unlikely that there will be a set seme/uke paradigm), minor Narusaku at the start

**Warnings:** Violence, yaoi

**A/N: **Hello everybody, I'm so excited to bring you my first fanfiction in three years! The first chapter of this is heavily inspired by the video game The Last Of us and anyone who has played that will be able to see however it deviates from that narrative significantly in future chapters. There is some Narusaku in this chapter and if you feel it gets a little heavy just skip it; her fate is still very clear throughout the chapter. I would also like to make a disclaimer; my story does not reflect my feelings for Sakura in any way as I hold no ill feelings towards her, her demise is simply here for Naruto's character development. I really hope you enjoy this story and I would love to hear some feedback from you guys so I can improve the story and make it a more enjoyable experience for you angels! On with the show!

* * *

_"Naruto, are you afraid to love?" _

_"No Sasuke, I'm afraid to love someone that will die."_

_"Then all I have to do is make sure I survive."_

* * *

July 26th 2011

Naruto Uzumaki had a good life, a humble life but a good one nonetheless. He had the most beautiful wife and daughter, a good job and a house that was more than adequate for his small family. He owned a small contracting company and his beloved worked as a nurse at the nearby hospital, they couldn't afford luxury cars or any of the latest technology but that did not matter to him, as long as he had enough money to keep his baby girl happy.

He was currently washing the dishes, laughing occasionally at his daughter's antics in the back garden. After his daughter his garden was his pride and joy, his sanctuary. It started off as a distraction he used after his wife's traumatic miscarriage, he felt like he had no right to openly show his despair when it was her that had to still give birth to the stillborn, however it was an abandoned project when Sakura insisted that they go to counselling instead. It wasn't until Annabelle was born that he picked up the hobby again, he wanted his child to share his sanctuary, to create a place that they could go to no matter how hard the world was and lose themselves in the sights and sweet smells of the plants. A plethora of floral abundance ran across the left side of the garden, filled with fragrant flowers that depicted every single colour of the rainbow, lush emerald greens, warming tones of red, orange and pink all littered across the ground, almost every flower one could find in your average garden store was planted in the rich, fertile soil. At the end was a small green house where he grew fruits and vegetables such as tomatoes and delicious, plump strawberries that would always burst with juice whenever one would bite into them. Other vegetables such as potatoes, cabbages and leeks all grew in a modest sized patch next to the pond which was the home of a few koi fish, an ode to his Mother's and Sakura's Japanese heritage. Speckles of red, black and white all intertwined under the light blue hue, creating small ripples and soft sounds of splashing in the otherwise motionless water. It was their sanctuary; nothing could hurt them under the cascades of shadows that blanketed whoever sat below the apple tree in the middle of the verdant lawn.

He trusted his daughter near the flowers but it was her desire to steal the tomatoes and strawberries from the greenhouse that made him watch her like a hawk whenever she was trying to play; Sakura always said she got her endless amounts of energy from Naruto and that was something he most definitely had to agree on.

He glanced up at the sky and frowned to himself, it was strange to see fog when it was warm and sunny, especially since they did not live in an area that suffered pollution due to heavy industry. He couldn't help the strange chill that clawed its way up his back either; he knew that there was a storm coming. He tried to ignore the incessant feelings of anxiousness, telling himself that it was probably nothing even though deep down something was telling him to watch his back; it was a shrill shriek coming from his daughter that brought him back down to planet earth.

"Careful near the pond baby girl, don't want you to hit your head." He shouted out of the window, chuckling to himself when he heard her release an overly dramatic sigh. Yes, Naruto Uzumaki had a good life but he could not shake the feeling that this life was going to be at risk.

* * *

He watched his wife's small chest rise and fall steadily, a sure sign that she was asleep. Her skin was so pale in comparison to his, it always gave her the look of a porcelain doll but he did worry, it was starting to look less porcelain and more sickly by the day. Even so he stroked his knuckles across her cheek so tenderly that the touch wouldn't faze even a hummingbird, he was admiring her beauty like he always did during his post coital state. He chuckled quietly as she let out a soft snore, something that always earned him a smack him on the back of the head if he mentioned it to their friends, he stopped having his own friends when they became married, just one more thing he was more than happy to share with his love. He continued to admire his wife's features when her snoring ceased, from her light pink hair that smelled of the strawberries she picked in the back garden hours before, to her dainty hand that held the proof of their marriage, like many things in their life her ring was simple, just the way she liked it. Anything more and she would have probably made him get his money back, she never believed in spending money on your significant other to show how you feel for them and insisted that he splurged on their daughter instead; a feat he always loved about her.

He looked at the clock that hung just above the bureau in the corner of their room and noted it was 2 am, it was then that he heard the sound of fighting. It wasn't a regular occurrence in their neighborhood and he tried to ignore it but something in the forefront of his mind kept urging him that it wasn't your everyday drunken scrap.

He carefully climbed out of bed, trying not to wake up Sakura and looked out of the window. His assumption was unfortunately correct; this wasn't a typical drunken scrap. One man pushed the other to the ground and straddled him, which may be pretty normal for a fight but instead of punching the fallen man he leaned down and proceeded to masticate on his adversary's face. The blond man ran down the stairs of the terraced house and proceeded to switch on the news, needless to say he was shocked at what he saw. Images and scenes of fights flashed across the screen, fights like the one he saw outside his bedroom window where one participant indulged in the act of cannibalism.

"We are urging people to evacuate their homes in vehicles and leave the city." The reporter announced to the camera as military officers behind her shot at the fiend's. He quickly switched off the grotesque news report the moment he heard his daughters bear feet pad against the mahogany floor of the lounge.

"Daddy? What are you doing up?" Annabelle inquired, rubbing her eyes with one hand while holding her favourite cuddly toy in the other.

"Annabelle, baby girl I need you to go and put on your shoes ok? Stay away from the windows and please hurry." He asked and started to run up the stairs into his bedroom, pulling on a pair of jeans a chequered shirt as fast as his body let him.

"Naruto, what the hell are you doing?" He heard his wife whisper from behind him as she sat up in the bed, the blanket pooling around her waist due to her movement, revealing the small perky breasts that were covered in minuscule welts due to her husband's earlier activities.

"Sakura, we have to get out of here, there's people out there fucking eating each other. I don't know what's going on but we really have to get out of here." He turned to face the woman and was surprised that she wasn't wearing an expression of shock but of guilt, he half expected her to smack the back of his head and laugh at how outrageous he sounded.

"I know. It's been happening in the hospital for a week now, I tried to save them Naruto, lord knows I tried but I couldn't and now they're-"

"You're not responsible Sakura but we need to leave now." He interrupted, pulling open the doors of the armoire and throwing some clothes on the bed for his wife to change into.

"Just get changed ok? I'm going to get Annabelle and we'll wait in the car for you." He gave her a chaste kiss on the lips before walking into his daughter's room.

"C'mon baby, we're going to wait in the car for Mommy."He said as he started to pack a small bag full of things to distract her during the car journey. He turned around to walk out with her and took sympathy on what he saw; she could barely keep her eyes open and was in the process of letting out a mighty yawn, it was then that the blond man decided that instead of making the poor girl walk he would just pick her up carry her, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead to help calm the confused and exhausted child, it wouldn't do them any favours if she was panicked and kicking up a fuss.

"We're going on a surprise trip to the country." He whispered as he carried her downstairs and to the front door only to realise he had no source of protection should they too be the target of one of these cannibalistic attacks. Naruto cursed under his breath and put down Annabelle before walking into the lounge and ripping out one of the drawers, digging under all of the paper work until he found what he was looking for, a small black pistol that he bought back when he was mugged as a teenager although he hoped that he would never have to use it he knew that in situations such as this it was always survival of the fittest.

"Daddy!" He heard his daughter scream so he ran to the hallway only to see her kneeling next to Sakura's body at the bottom of the stairs. His heart stopped at the sight his wife was contorted in such a strange way which made it clear to him that she has fallen down the stairs, her face looked just as horrified as it did when she went through the miscarriage. Swallowing the lump in his throat he knelt next to the woman that he had spent the last eight years of his life with, taking her now frail hand as she held it out to him.

"I knew. I fucking knew you were ill. Why didn't you tell me?" He mumbled against her knuckles, placing kisses on the delicate bones as tears threatened to fall from his eyes. This wasn't happening, it couldn't be happening; she was the love of his life, they were supposed to watch Annabelle grow up together, watch her graduate, get married, grow old and eventually die together in a hospital bed when their old, brittle bodies could no longer handle the burden of living.

"Naruto, it's too late for me." His wife whispered, coughing on the thick bile that was clawing its way up her throat as she weakly squeezed her husband's much larger hand.

"Protect her Naruto. Protect Annabelle." Another cough, one more violent this time, escaped her as her voice grew raspy, signalling to her that this was the end, she would either die or turn into one of those monsters, she prayed that it would be the former as the thought of chasing people only to devour their flesh and innards increased her feeling of nausea tenfold. When she could hear the quiet sniffles coming from the feeble child next to her she reached up with her free hand to wipe the tears away from sea green eyes as she always did when her angel cried.

"You've grown to be so beautiful, I'm so proud of you." She then looked back up at the ceiling; her eyes struggling to come into focus, the transformation had already started. She felt like her insides were boiling, her blood felt as though it was being poisoned with some sort of corrosive acid, her skin becoming too tight, suffocating her.

"Naruto, don't you dare live the rest of your life alone and Annabelle; give 'em hell girl." Anabelle nodded, her mother always said those words to her before she went to school, she would have laughed and high fived her under normal circumstances but right now all she could do was cry as her mother's eyes grew more bloodshot by the second.

"I love you." Naruto whispered before he stood up and ushered Annabelle out of the house, trying to stay strong even though his daughter's agonised screams shook him to the core. He had to leave Sakura now or he wouldn't ever leave and that meant he would have to shoot her if she tried to hurt Annabelle, something that seemed more haunting than listening to her cough up the blood and bile as she started to turn.

The roads were completely jammed, drivers desperately trying to squash their car into any gap they saw form ahead of them, even though it was always such a frivolous attempt. Horns were blaring, sirens of police cars and ambulances caused an ear-splitting ringing in his ears, pair that up with all of the indicators flashing and Naruto was certain he was going to have to endure the worst migraine ever; it seemed as though everyone in the whole dammed city had the same idea, at least they were away from the cannibals.

He looked over his shoulder to check on his princess, thanking god that she was ok. She was traumatized, heartbroken and still sobbing into her cuddling toy but she hadn't undergone any sort of physical harm as of yet.

The blond head rested on the steering wheel as Naruto tired to collect his thoughts and figure out how to get out of this mess a task which only grew harder as he could hear his daughter sniffling in the background. How did this happen? This morning he had helped Annabelle get ready for school, dropped Sakura off at work and spent the rest of his day relaxing and watching sports with his best friend Kiba. Now he was a single parent, a single parent that was going to ram his truck into the back of the asshole that kept honking his horn and swearing at just about everybody and their mother.

"Fuck! Everyone Run!" He turned his head towards to garage station across the road and that's when he saw it, a hoard of people came running from behind the concession store, screaming and banging on the windows of other's vehicles in a blind panic to get to somewhere safe.

"Uncle Kiba!" Annabelle yelled, pointing to a man with brown shaggy hair that was running into the road, stuck in the middle of the mob, some of which were infected. Naruto turned around his car as best he could, bumping and scraping all the others around him and ignoring the frustrated yells he was awarded with as he drove over to the mob, opening his door when Kiba was near.

"Quick get in!" He hollered at his friend who jumped in without hesitation, panting heavily with tears streaming down his face.

"They killed her. The sons of bitches killed Hinata! You better fucking run them over Uzumaki or those infected bastards will be the least of your worries!" Kiba demanded angrily, despair evident in his breaking voice. Naruto gave his friend a quick glance, sweat was rolling from his forehead; his usual handsome face was caked in dirt and blood, grazed fingers fidgeted with a loose button on his ripped dress shirt, his friend had all sorts of gore trapped under his fingernails and the blond had to force himself to look away as yet another feeling of nausea came creeping up on him.

Hinata Hyuuga was their old school friend, she was always smitten with Naruto but unfortunately for her he had his eyes on Sakura from the very start, she was in all of Kiba's classes and little did she know he was always staring at her, drooling of course. It wasn't until they left high school and Naruto started to date Sakura that Hinata finally paid attention to Kiba, it didn't take the long for the young couple to marry, it was clear to her and everyone else that Kiba was a good man and he would never let any harm come to his beloved, well until tonight that was.

"Please don't look baby girl. Promise me you'll close your eyes, I don't want you to see this." Naruto begged his daughter, smiling at her in the rear view mirror in an attempt to soothe her haunted soul, he then took a deep breath and put the truck into gear, with shaking hands he started to drive through the hoard of infected people, crushing them under the wheel of his car; he could hear every single one of their bones chip, crack and eventually break due to the weight being forced on top of them.

"Fuck Naruto! Look out!" Kiba hollered as he pointed to an oncoming truck, Naruto tried to turn the truck around but it was too late, they skidded across the road and crashed into a wall, causing the front window to smash. He groaned out in pain as the shards of glass cut into the arm he held up to protect his eyes but he couldn't let this stop him, he had to get out he had to get Annabelle out and to safety, he would never forgive himself if he lost Sakura and her in the same night but his ears were still ringing incessantly and he could hear people screaming as they ran past the truck and away from those infected monsters. To his left he saw another car that looked like it had been in an accident but upon further inspection he saw the car housed two people, one of them desperately trying to fight off the savage but it was hopeless and soon the man had his arm being demolished.

He climbed out of the damaged truck with Kiba in tow, limping towards Annabelle's door he almost tripped over his own feet, he had to grab the door handle to steady himself a task which was much more difficult than usual due to his sweaty palms that refused to allow him to effectively hold on to anything; it was probably just a sprained ankle but as far as sprains go, this one was pretty sore.

"Daddy look out!" She screamed desperately, pointing to the cannibal that was running towards her father. Naruto turned around hurriedly but found himself pinned up against the car, the other's savage growls were deafening as it moved closer to rip into his flesh. Was this really how he was going to die? Pinned to his car by some beast and eaten in front of his own daughter?

"Get the fuck off of him!" Kiba shouted as he smashed a metal pole into the creatures face until there was hardly anything left to call a face.

Naruto threw his gun to Kiba and turned back to help Annabelle from the truck, almost ripping the door from its hinges as he took her tiny, smooth hand into his large, calloused one and pulled her into his arms, giving her the tightest hug he could muster.

"We gotta keep moving." Kiba announced and so he, Annabelle and her Father ran through the streets, hoping to get away from the chaos even for a moment but that was too much to ask for, it was always too much to ask for. They winded their way through the alleyways, the smell of trashcans making them heave along with the scenes of horror playing out in front of them that the flickering street lamps illuminated. People were cornered, ripped apart and eaten, Naruto kept begging Annabelle to keep her eyes closed but she couldn't, she did not want Naruto to have to go through the entire ordeal alone so she forced herself to watch every single bone that was broken and every single face that was eaten just like he had to.

They ran through buildings and climbed over fences, Kiba trying his hardest to shoot every single cannibal he saw and the ones he couldn't shoot in time they just had to outrun which was starting to become a task for the Blond with his sprained ankle and Annabelle still in his arms.

They came to a stop at a dirt track that looked abandoned and caught their breath for a few seconds, dawn was creeping upon them. The sun could be seen from over the horizon, dust and leaves blowing in the cool morning breeze that tousled Naruto's blond locks. They had finally been granted their moment of peace that they so desperately craved but how many more mornings of this would they have to endure? He didn't even want to think about it so instead he stroked his daughter's bangs from her eyes and kissed her head; he didn't care what happened to him during this madness, he just wanted to keep her safe and sound, he would go through hell if it meant she could live to see another day.

The sound of heavy footsteps could be heard before a bellowing voice, causing the trio to turn around swiftly so that they could come face to face with what was hopefully another ally. "Freeze and put your hands up! All of you!" It was an officer from the military and looking at the size of the gun he had Naruto did not want to disobey so he held one hand in the air, using the other to hold Annabelle.

"We're not infected; we're just trying to escape." Naruto announced desperately on behalf of the small group.

"I got a small group of people here, three of them. They claim to not be infected, awaiting further orders." The officer spoke into his radio, holding the gun to Naruto and then to Kiba to get the point across that he really would shoot them if they dared to move.

"But Sir, there's a little girl with them... Yes, yes I understand." He replied to his commanding officer, he then sighed and looked back up to Naruto, guilt evident in his hazel eyes.

"Listen I'm sorry but orders are orders." The man declared before he held his gun up to aim in between Naruto's eyes.

"Fuck that." Naruto cursed and turned around to run, it would be a cold day in hell before he was shot by the same people that were supposed to protect the cities inhabitants.

The gunman rained down bullets onto the blond and his daughter, the logical part of his brain told him he could never outrun a bullet but there was no logic when his baby girl was at risk so he ran. He ran faster than he had ever ran before, he ran until his lungs were burning and his legs were about to give out, the pain from his ankle sending spikes of pure agony up his leg but he ignored it. Sweat started to trickle down the back of his neck and under his shirt as he pushed himself to sprint faster and faster then he saw it; an overturned car. He tried to scan the area for anyone that was infected but he didn't have time, he could hear the officer's heavy boots in the distance so he took Annabelle and crouched behind the car with her, cradling her to his chest and praying to god that this was all a dream, that he was about to wake up with his beautiful wife in his arms and his daughter bouncing on the bed until he got up to make her pancakes.

It started to become deafening; the intense sound of the boots that pursued them, he knew this was the end for him but there was no way in hell that son of a bitch was taking his daughter from him. He covered the young girl's mouth with his hand to keep her breathing quiet in a futile attempt to fool the military officer that the area was empty but it was hopeless.

"Well well, thought you could run away did ya? You know what that tells me Son? It tells me you're hiding something." He said, gun slung over his shoulder as he walked around the car to come face to face with his prey.

"Fuck you." Naruto spat back, cradling Anna closer to him and squeezing his eyes closed. He heard the gunshots, counted them even all twelve of them but he didn't feel a thing. Maybe he was dead? No no, that wasn't it he could still hear his heart hammering away inside his rib cage but did he dare open his eyes?

"D-Daddy..." He had to open them, he _had_ to but they felt like weights that were too heavy for him to handle.

"Shit Annabelle!" He heard the Kiba voice shout; he opened his eyes and saw the officer dead on the floor, eleven bullet holes in him all of which he bled from profusely. He looked up and saw Kiba holding the pistol that took the life from his chaser and then he looked down and his whole world came crashing down. The twelfth and final bullet was embedded into his child's abdomen; her beautiful face was contorted in pain as her small, pink, petal lips opened up so she could cry out in agony for the second time.

"D-Daddy please, make it stop! Make the pain go!" She screamed, holding onto her stomach in an effort to will away the excruciating pain.

It was a request he could not fulfill, he had always given her everything any girl could dream of: dolls, bikes, clothes, hell even when she requested an Action Man he ran to the nearest toy store to make yet another one of her wishes come true. He always told his pride and joy that he would give her the entire world; all she had to do was ask.

"It's gonna be ok baby it's all going to be fine. Just stay with me please; I can't do this without you. Just stay with me baby girl." He murmured into her hair as he rocked her back and forth, the sound of her whimpers dying down as she took her final breaths.

"Baby? Annabelle? No no, don't do this to me please! We were going to the country tomorrow. Me and you, we were gonna pick flowers for Mommy. Remember? I said there was no flower out there more beautiful than you two. Anna, Sweetheart?" He gazed down at her and then realised his words were useless as she was already dead. The rain washed away her blood but he knew that from now on whenever he looked at his hands all he would see is the crimson liquid from his baby girl's body slip through his fingertips, it wasn't the military officer that killed her it was his incompetence as a father that ended the young girl's life. The rain was getting louder, heavier, Kiba was shouting at him from the top of his lungs, the sound of screeching tires and the screams of innocent bystanders could be heard but every single one of these noises paled in comparison to Naruto's anguished cries. He had lost his wife and his daughter and for once his life didn't seem so good after all.


End file.
